WINE & SPICE

Of course, you can haphazardly pair a wine with a dish, and with a little luck you will have the right combination. In practice, this will often be disappointing. The beauty of the right wine-food combo is that you create harmony. The dish with the right wine will make the dish taste better, as well as the wine. This ensures that you enjoy to the fullest.

Wine and food...so important!
 

You have to eat every day so you better make something of it. And every evening it is fun to think about what wine we will drink with our meal. Often it is the other way around: I am hungry for a wine and then I cook around it.

Of course, you can haphazardly pair a wine with a dish, and with a little luck you will have the right combination. In practice, this will often be disappointing. The beauty of the right wine-food combo is that you create harmony. The dish with the right wine will make the dish taste better, as well as the wine. This ensures that you enjoy to the fullest.
 

#QUALITY

It is also fine in terms of quality. So with a vulgar hot dog you should not drink a nice Reserva, but rather a slobber wine. The Reserva goes with a leg of lamb, a fine ribeye or a nice old cheese, for example. Anyway: taste is personal. If you only like red wine and think it goes well with everything, that's great!
 

#WINE AND REGION

In fact, the system has traditionally worked so that where the wine is produced the dishes from the region go excellently with it. The cheeses from the Loire go perfectly with the spicy wines from there. The stews from the Bairrada go perfectly with the full-bodied, red wines produced from the Baga grape. In our country, this culture does not exist. The quality of the wines produced here is still improving and there is some delicious stuff among them. But yes....dan the dish from the region, there is none. Fortunately, there are a number of restaurants that do the most beautiful things with homegrown products and serve delicious wines with them.

Meanwhile, our little chickadee may have one of the richest cuisines in the world. Every kitchen has its restaurant. Tokos, delicatessens and wholesalers: the most extraordinary products are available.
 

#THE BASIS

There are some basic rules: red meat - red wine, fish - white wine. In itself this is still correct. But everything depends on what we do with the meat or fish. Often the sauces, seasonings or dressings are not the main seasoning. The steak with only some pepper and salt, yes then indeed red. But what if the steak is roasted with red peppers and some soy, then still prefer a dry rosé.
Sardines, grilled or pickled, can perfectly tolerate lightly chilled, medium-bodied red wine.
Salads often go nicely with a white wine. But what if it contains bacon or cashews, a hearty vinegar, forest mushrooms or anchovies?

The baselines are in the chart above.
Below I throw out some dishes with matching wines from our shop.
It is difficult to list all the dishes, we would have to start an extra site for that ... hence the choice of about thirty dishes to start with. These will be expanded in the coming time. New discoveries will certainly be shared.

Are you going to put something special on the table yourself and you don't find the dish among them: send an email or give me a call, and I can advise you.

Bom apetit e saude,

Reggie

© Avalon Wine & Food

Wine & food overview

ANSJOVIS

With the salty fish, a vinho verde goes very well.

GRILLED FISH

With most grilled fish, you can go either way with white.

  • Segredos Boal 
  • Maria Gomes branco
  • Informal Espumante
  • Maria Gomes Espumante

SEA BASS FROM THE BBQ

With sea bass, our Infiel is irresistible. 

  • Autocarro No. 38
  • Autocarro No. 13
  • ALFAIATE

SEA BASS IN THE SALT

Wines that survive the salt just fine are spicy, fresh, white wines.

  • ALFAIATE
  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Alvarinho

GRILLED SARDINES

Portugal's finest. With vinho verde and smooth reds.

  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Vinho Verde tinto Sousão
  • Lightly chilled Tradição Castelão
  • Fernão Pires Tinto

COOKED SALM

Smoked salmon can go with a lot of white. The über combination is with this vinho verde.

  • Vinho Verde Quinta do Cruzeiro
  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Maria Gomes Espumante

CALAMARES

Nice fresh white, the ideal combination.

  • Maria Gomes branco
  • Horácio de Simões Tradiçao branco

FRUITS DE MER

Fruits de mer are best enjoyed with fresh, dry, slightly spicy, white wines.

  • Vinho Verde Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Tradição Boal
  • ALFAIATE
  • Vinhas Velhas Branco
  • Maria Gomes Vinho Branco

CANCER

Lobster is fine with a fine vinho verde or the noble QVA Reserva Branco.

  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Grande Reserva Branco
  • Vinha Formal Branco
  • Lacrau branco

PRAWNS FROM THE GRILL

Natural preferably with Infiel Branco. Should they be prepared with peppers and garlic then again spicy, fresh, dry.

  • Autocarro No. 38
  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Alvarinho
  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho Quinta de SanJOanne

MOSSELEN

Best with dry, white wine.

  • Tradição Boal
  • Vinho Verde Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Maria Gomes Vinho Branco

OESTERS

With rich, subtle white.

  • Espumante Duckman Maria Gomes
  • Tradição branco
  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Maria Gomes Espumante

GRILLED OR FRIED BEEF

A beautiful piece of meat deserves a nice, layered red

  • Lacrau tinto
  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Gr. Res. Tinto
  • HERDADE DO PORTOCARRO
  • Vinhas Velhas Tinto
  • Maria Gomes Colheita Seleccionada Tinto

HACHEE

The spices in the hachee need hearty, red, complex wines.

  • Crooked Vines tinto
  • Xaíno Selection Tinto
  • ANIMA
  • Quinta do Moinho

HAMBURGERS

A burger with its sauces comes out best with a smooth, fine, red.

  • AUTOCARRO Nº 27
  • Maria Gomes Colheita Seleccionada Tinto
  • Pato Rebel Tinto

CARPACCIO

White, red and rosé can be drunk with carpaccio. It just depends on what you are in the mood for.

  • Tradição Castelão
  • Tradição rosado
  • AUTOCARRO Nº 27
  • Pato Rebel Tinto

CHORIZO | CHOURIÇO

Spicy Iberian sausage versus Iberian, spicy wine or full-bodied rosé.

  • HERDADE DO PORTOCARRO 
  • Segredos Bastardo
  • Vinhas Velhas Branco

JAMON | HAM

Fine meat, fine wine.

  • ANIMA
  • Informal Espumante
  • Tears of Anima Rosado
  • Quinta do Ribeirinho Pé Franco

DUCKBILL

Very enjoyable with dry rosé or soft reds.

  • AUTOCARRO Nº 27
  • Vinha Pan
  • Pato Rebel Tinto
  • Informal Espumante

GRILLED CHICKEN

With chicken, you can go either way. 

  • AUTOCARRO Nº 27
  • ALFAIATE
  • Tears of Anima Rosado
  • Pato Rebel Tinto

PEKINGEND

Peking duck pleases me best with light, complex whites or a dry rosé.

  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho
  • Vinho Verde tinto Sousão
  • Tradição rosado

FRANGO PIRI PIRI

Spicy, so nice spicy vinho verde. Or try a lightly chilled red.

  • Vinho Verde Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Alvarinho
  • Vinhas Velhas Branco
  • Vinho Verde tinto Sousão

GOAT MEAT - LAMB

Goat and lamb are hearty in flavor and texture, so is the matching red wine.

  • Lacrau tinto
  • ANIMA
  • Quinta do Moinho
  • CAVALO MALUCO

PASTA PESTO

Rich, fresh white suits this best.

  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Alvarinho
  • Tears of Anima rosé
  • ALFAIATE

PASTA - PIZZA WITH BLUE CHEESE

A powerful, red wine comes into its own here.

  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Tinto
  • Crooked Vines tinto
  • HERDADE DO PORTOCARRO 
  • Autocarro No. 27

PASTA - PIZZA SHELLFISH

Play with white.

  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Gr. Res. Branco
  • Vinho Verde Escolha Branco
  • Crooked Vines branco
  • Informal Espumante

SPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE

Dry rosé or semi-heavy red is the Bolognese friend.

  • Tears of Anima Rosado
  • Autocarro No. 13 
  • AUTOCARRO Nº 27
  • Maria Gomes Colheita Seleccionada Tinto

ASPERGES

Asparagus needs spicy, white wines.
Traditional white asparagus with ham, egg and butter sauce is also delicious with somewhat less spicy wines.

  • Maria Gomes branco
  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Alvarinho
  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho Quinta de SanJoanne

CAESAR SALAD

Spicy white.

  • Vinho Verde Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Vinhas Velhas branco
  • ALFAIATE

PEA SOUP | SNERT

Full-bodied, round, red wines or try our special white.

  • Xaíno Selection Tinto
  • Baga/Touriga Nacional
  • Vinho Verde Escolha Branco

RATATOUILLE

Delicious with dry rosé. Also very nice with a sliding white.

  • Tradição rosado
  • Autocarro No. 13
  • Maria Gomes Vinho Branco

HUTSPOT

  • ALFAIATE (personal favorite)
  • Vinho Verde Alvarinho Quinta de San Joanne
  • Pato Rebel Tinto

With stew, I prefer a full red.

  • Herdade do Portocarro
  • Vinhas Velhas Tinto

BRIE

This creamy cheese is delicious with full-bodied white and slightly complex, red wines.

  • Vinha Formal
  • Crooked Vines branco
  • Fernão Pires Tinto

CAMEMBERT

A little firmer than brie so a spicy white, a dry rosé or a hearty red.

  • Tears of Anima rosé
  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Alvarinho
  • Pato Rebel Tinto
  • HERDADE DO PORTOCARRO 

FETA

Feta is somewhat salty, so a nice, spicy, white wine to go with it.

  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Alvarinho
  • Vinho Verde Quinta de SanJoanne
  • ALFAIATE

OLD DUTCH CHEESE

Preferably a complex, spicy red.

  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Gr. Res. Tinto
  • ANIMA
  • HERDADE DO PORTOCARRO
  • Quinta do Moinho

CHEESE FUNDUE

Cheese fondue calls for dry, white wine. 

  • Tradiçao Boal
  • Vinho Verde Quinta de SanJoanne
  • Maria Gomes Vinho Branco

MANCHEGO

Manchego, Spanish sheep cheese, you have from young to old. So in terms of wine, you go from young and light to complex and mature.

  • HERDADE DO PORTOCARRO 
  • Quinta do Moinho
  • Tradição Castelão

MOZZARELLA WITH TOMATO

I personally like caprese salad best with a spicy, white.

  • Quinta Vale d'Aldeia Alvarinho
  • Vinho Verde Terroir Mineral
  • Vinha Formal Branco

ROQUEFORT AND MOST OTHER BLUE CHEESES

Best with a rich dessert wine, but try it with a port or stevog red.

  • Vinho Verde Winter Harvest
  • Lacrau Tawny 20 years
  • Xaíno Selection Tinto
  • Moscatel Roxo

STRAWBERRIES

With sweet strawberries, sweet wines come out best.

  • Horáçio de Simões Moscatel de Setúbal
  • Vinho Verde Winter Harvest
  • AM Rosado
  • Vinho Licoroso Bastardo

APPLE TART

  • Vinho Verde Winter Harvest
  • Vinho da Maria
  • AM Rosado
  • Moscatel de Setúbal 

CRÈME BRÛLÉE

Pretty sweet so again sweet dessert wines to go with this.

  • Vinho Verde Winter Harvest
  • Horáçio de Simões Moscatel de Setúbal
  • Moscatel de Setúbal

TIRAMISU

  • Vinho Verde Winter Harvest
  • Vinho da Maria
  • Moscatel de Setúbal